


Blue Moon

by alwayswhenleastexpected



Category: Fallout: New Vegas, Iron Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: AU, Gen, Old World Blues, roboscorpions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-04-02
Updated: 2013-07-14
Packaged: 2017-12-07 07:18:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,478
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/745802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alwayswhenleastexpected/pseuds/alwayswhenleastexpected
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony Stark, who has been trapped in Big Mountain, runs into the first human he's seen in three years; Steve Rogers. Together they escape and head back to the Mojave Wasteland, where a mysterious new figure has New Vegas in their grip and tension between the NCR and the Red Skull's Legion reaches its snapping point.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I've had this idea brewing in my head for a while now, and it's finally turning into something readable. 
> 
> Starting out pretty small, but within a couple of chapters we'll have the whole Avengers (and then some!) gang running around the Mojave. 
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own the Avengers or Fallout: New Vegas. I just have a weird imagination.

“Good morning, sir. It is 10:22 am. Today is Thursday, March 26, year 2281. Weather status: fifty-five degrees Fahrenheit, partly cloudy. UV exposure risk: minimal. Radiation exposure risk: minimal.”

“Thanks, Jarvis.” Tony muttered sleepily, burying his face in the pillow.

“I was also asked to remind sir that there are currently seven empty vodka bottles under the foyer table, and Muggy is refusing to dispose of them because they do not qualify as coffee cups,” the Central Intelligence Unit reported. 

“I AM NOT YOUR DISH BOY,” came a hysterical scream from the main room.

“Tell Muggy I’m going to reprogram him eventually so he might as well do it now.”

A series of grumbling and cursing followed, accompanied by a “SILENCE! QUIT YOUR WHIMPERING OR I WILL BURN YOU!” 

“SHUT UP TOASTER. YOU CAN’T DO ANYTHING EXCEPT MAKE TOAST.”

Toaster growled. “I’m not just a toaster! Once my takeover of the world begins, I will—”

“Oh I’m so scared! What are you gonna do, throw burnt toast at me?”

“FOOL! I WILL—”

“Boys, Boys!” Tony groaned into his pillow. “If you don’t shut up now I’m gonna throw you both down the book chute!” 

Muggy and Toaster stopped, the noise level finally reduced to angry grumbling and plotting from the Toaster and a rejected sigh from the miniature securitron. 

Tony grunted and sat up. “Anything new so far today, Jarvis?”

“No new disturbances on the perimeter, sir. There is increased Cazador activity near the Z-14 Pepsinae splicing lab. A small number of lobotomites are attempting to break into Higgs village.” 

“Oh, fuck.” Tony gave in decided it was time to get out of bed. “Keep me updated, will you?” He sluggishly donned some clothes and wandered to the fridge in the biology lab. 

“Mmm, nothing like some synthetically spliced pears for breakfast.”

“Just the juicy result of my magical seed, baby,” the biological research station hummed. 

“Thanks for reminding me that I haven’t gotten laid in three years, Bio.” 

“Hey, if you want help with that—“

Tony almost choked on his pear. “No! No, no thanks.”

He wandered back into the main room and had the Central AI machine bring up an image of the Big Mountain crater. 

All labs and areas of significance within the crater were marked in green. His eyes darted to where the “forbidden” zone was marked, where Dr. Mobius still sat, spewing threats at Tony and the Think Tank in a Mentats- induced rage. The energy field that created the impenetrable perimeter wall was highlighted in red, creating a dome around the entire crater.

Tony figured that the energy field could probably be shut off in Mobius’ lab, but he didn’t think he would survive the trip until the armor he was customizing was ready. He knew that most of what Mobius boomed at him were crazed empty threats, but after numerous run-ins with his army of robotic scorpions, he was starting to take the threat of the “X-42 Giant Roboscorpion” in the forbidden dome pretty seriously. 

In an ideal world, once the perimeter was down, Tony could then bring in reinforcements to take out any remaining lobotomites and other dangerous creatures roaming the crater. Then he could start the labs back up and hopefully continue research with a new crew of scientists. 

But until then, no one came and went until Mobius decided he wanted them to, transporting them, as he did Tony, through mysterious means into the crater. As far as Tony knew, only three people had ever escaped the Big Empty, and Tony remained the only human who had not been reduced to a mindless, raging lobotomite roaming the crater. 

All Tony had for company were the artificial intelligence modules previously installed in various appliances in his home inside the Think Tank (his favored being the central computer, whom he had fondly named Jarvis), and while their characters were amusing and sometimes comforting, it did nothing to replace human contact. 

It was very, very lonely. 

Casting that thought aside, Tony dismissed the map and brought up a 3-D image of a suit of armor. 

“Your armor is coming along nicely, sir. Although might I add, sir, that painting it red and gold is ostentatious and will likely draw the attention of all deadly creatures within a mile radius.”

Tony grinned. “Well, why not? I can finally run around the west side of the crater, and anywhere really, once I get the fuck out of here, without worrying about dying of nightstalker or cazador poison. Or laser burns. So yeah, all deadly creatures can come on over and suck my well-armored red and gold dick.” 

“Very presumptuous, but a delightful image nonetheless, sir.”

“You don’t have to question my ingenuity, honey.”

Tony had started on the armor about a year ago after limping back from the X-13 Infiltrator research facility after a bad run in with a Robobrain and several lobotomites. His combat armor served him well, but tended to wither alarmingly fast against laser blasts and a steady rain of bullets. If it hadn’t been for the auto-doc provided in the Think Tank, he would not be walking.

When he returned with as many prototypes of the stealth suit as he could carry, he had begun creating an armor of his own. It had taken him several months of putting together a work station where he could figure out how to work the stealth suit and reinforce it, as well as replenishing or repairing the resources in Think Tank labs.

Of course, a good portion of that time had also been taken up by nursing battle wounds after every trip outside, or moping on various surfaces with a bottle of scotch and sobbing to the juke box that he was never going to see another un-lobotomized human face again. 

When he finished the armor, however, he would finally feel safe enough to make the trek across the crater to confront Dr. Mobius. And then he would finally find a way back to civilization, no matter what it took.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony sets out to confront Mobius.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahahaha this is really slow updating. Unbeta'd, so I apologize for any mistakes I missed (do feel free to point them out)

“I’m sorry, but the last weapon you tried to ‘customize’ for me exploded in my face,” Tony said around a mouthful of banana yucca. “I didn’t have eyebrows for two weeks!”

“That was an isolated incident!” the toaster boomed. “You brought me an inferior specimen.” 

Tony swallowed and rolled his eyes. “Yeah, speaking of inferior specimen,” he muttered. “Anyway, no, I’m not letting you near my armor.”

Steam shot out of the Toaster’s bread slot. “Fine! Don’t turn your measly suit into a weapon of mass destruction! See if I fucking care!”

As Tony crossed the main room of the Sink to get to the biology lab, Muggy wheeled past his legs. “You better hope he doesn’t leave crumbs all over your bed sheets.” 

Tony shrugged and went to fill a glass at the sink, ignoring its murmurs of “I sure hope that glass doesn’t have germs all over it” as he took a long drink. “If he does I’m shoving a wrench up his bread slot.”

“HEY! I HEARD THAT!”

 

The next morning, Tony made his way into the large domed laboratory of the Think Tank that the previous five scientists occupied until Tony had decided to “disable” them. Their equipment, the most advanced and unusual that Tony had ever dealt with, had remained intact and running, spanning across most of the room. 

Across from the stairs that led up into the lab, Tony had set up a small improvised workshop for his suit. As he reached the table where the armor lay disassembled, he grinned to himself and reached out to rap his fist against the chest plate, which shone red and gold in the harsh laboratory light. “Look at this beauty. Wonder how much the Brotherhood of Steel would pay to get their greasy hands on this.” 

“According to my calculations, when sir’s armor is complete, its approximate value will–” 

“— that was rhetorical, Jarvis. I think it’s time for a test drive, don’t you think?”

“I would not be capable of stopping you, sir,” the AI hummed. 

Getting the suit on was a tedious process; it carried too much like power armor, Tony realized with dismay as he moved in it. His agility would be compromised, but at least he didn’t have to worry about nightstalker bites or laser burns. 

“Alright, Jarvis. Daddy will be right back,” said Tony has he hefted his plasma rifle over his shoulder. 

“I would like to remind sir that it is physically impossible for sir to be my father.”

“I… I know that, Jarvis, I was just… never mind.”

After doubling back through the Sink for the rest of his travel gear and a spare pistol, he headed out of the Think Tank’s sanctuary and into the abandoned crater of Big Mountain. 

As the door slid shut behind him, Tony took a deep breath through his helmet and readjusted his grip on his rifle. 

Bringing up a map of the crater on his pip boy, he surveyed his route north to the only other domed structure in the crater, which its insane occupant had dubbed “the forbidden zone”.

He remained nervous about having to circle around the think tank’s dome to head north. Lobotomites still liked to gather around its perimeter, as though their angry glares will someday pierce through the dome’s otherwise impenetrable walls. Although Tony had confidence in the durability of his new armor, he didn’t want to test its endurance against a lobotomite with a shotgun just yet. 

 

His path was clear until he hit lower ground, and from there he followed the rail tracks that led to the north tunnel right next to the forbidden dome. Other than a stray nightstalker that went down quickly with a pistol, Tony met no other resistance, of which he was both grateful and suspicious. 

The silence in the crater made Tony itch; the Sink’s constant AI chatter, although no substitute for human contact, was still his greatest comfort in comparison to the desolation that ate at Tony whenever he stepped outside of the dome. 

“Maybe…” Tony began to hum as quietly as he could; his voice reverberated strangely inside his helmet. “… You’ll think of me, when you are all alone…” 

A handful of decaying train cars rose from the horizon line; beyond them Tony spotted the large metal gate of the north tunnel. 

“Maybe, the one who is waiting for you…” 

Tony had never actually been inside this tunnel; its proximity to the forbidden zone made it too dangerous to try and enter. He presumed it to be collapsed and unusable like the other two tunnels that led into Big MT. 

“… will prove untrue, then what will you do?” 

His quiet serenade was cut short when he found the entrance to the dome being guarded by five roboscorpions. 

“Oh, here we go.”

He lifted his plasma rifle and yelled out as two of the scorpions fired at him; the resulting shock of the blast threw him back a couple of feet, making his head spin. Ducking behind a boulder, he fired at the scorpions in quick succession, the plasma eating away at their metal plating. 

The blare of their lasers rang through Tony’s helmet. He uselessly clawed at his head as he scrambled to dodge the following blasts. 

“Note to self: remember to properly insulate metal helmet, damn it,” he huffed as he fired again at the pursuing roboscorpions. The plasma he shot at them was slow but effective; the robotic creatures’ metal bodies screeched and deteriorated into piles of molten metal. 

Once his attackers had broken down completely, he stepped over their sparking hulls to the surprisingly unassuming door that Tony found to be suspiciously unlocked. 

The sight that greeted him inside confirmed his one subconscious fear, and he ducked into the corner, praying that the GIANT ROBOSCORPION OF DOOM standing right in the middle of the large domed space had not detected his presence.

As it turns out, Mobius’ raves were more than just talk after all. 

He didn’t really think that the plasma rifle or his back up pistol would do anything against the robot. With a curse, he realized he should’ve brought his sonic emitter. 

A warning beep from his pip boy roused him from his thoughts, and he looked up just in time to see that the giant roboscorpion had its metallic face turned in his direction, and he had about half a second to think “I’m dead” before a large blast erupted from its tail. Tony turned and hopped the metal railing to dash up the stairs to the first observation trailer, feeling heat radiating through his suit. He ducked and skidded to a halt underneath the table, his heart pounding and nausea rolling in his stomach. Another beep from his pip boy made him look down as it highlighted his elevated rad count. 

“Goddammit,” he muttered as he slowly peeked out from under the table. On the wall there was a first-aid kit, which hopefully contained some Rad-Away. 

His muscles screamed at him from the strain of moving so fast in the armor as he crawled over to the wall and reached an arm open to wrench open the box. Two packets of Rad-Away and a Stimpak fell out, and he quickly grabbed all three, groaning softly in relief. Daring a look out to the floor, he saw the roboscorpion had its tail turned away from him for the moment. Crawling back under the table and removing one of his gauntlets, he deftly hooked the Rad-Away to his hand and took a breather and willed his panic to subside, slowly making his way to the other end of the trailer to the next set of stairs. 

Tony did not know where he was going, where Mobius would be, or how he would actually make it back outside alive. He had one stealth boy in the pack attached to his hip, but he was worried it would be more needed in the future. 

Risking another glance out the trailer, he took note of the stairs and observation trailers that lined the wall around the space where the roboscorpion stood, its large legs making loud thuds as it slowly rotated itself. 

When it faced away from him again, he set out to the next trailer, clutching his Rad-Away pack that was still hooked to his hand, and cringing every time his feet met the stairs. Out of the corner of this eyes he saw the roboscorpion turn, and he lunged for shelter, the suit screeching softly as he skidded across metal. 

His eyes were screwed shut as he waited for the next blast, but it did not come. Tony exhaled, almost laughing as he unhooked the Rad-Away, pressing down on his hand and panting as he attempted to form something resembling a plan in his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: ENTER STEVE ROGERS. Get this ball rolling, yeah.


End file.
